Literature Review

Vitas Healthcare unveils inpatient hospice unit at Franciscan Health Olympia Fields GlobeNewswire, Chicago, IL; Press release; 12/12/24 Residents of Olympia Fields and Chicagoland’s surrounding southern suburban communities can now access quality end-of-life care at the VITAS Healthcare Inpatient Hospice Unit at Franciscan Health Olympia Fields. Located on the second floor of the hospital at 20201 South Crawford Ave., this new facility is expected to serve more than 500 seriously ill patients each year. “We are grateful to have this hospice unit as part of our hospital campus, where we can provide compassionate care to patients and families during one of life’s most sacred and challenging times,” said Raymond Grady, president and chief executive officer of Franciscan Health Olympia Fields. “This unit meets a critical need in our community, offering comfort, dignity and spiritual support to those at the end of life.”

Watch: ‘Going It Alone’ — A conversation about growing old in AmericaKFF Health News; by Judith Graham; 12/11/24 KFF Health News’ “Navigating Aging” columnist, Judith Graham, spent six months this year talking to older adults who live alone by choice or by circumstance — most commonly, a spouse’s death. They shared their hopes and fears, challenges, and strategies for aging solo. Graham moderated a live event on Dec. 11, hosted by KFF Health News and The John A. Hartford Foundation. She invited five seniors ranging in age from 71 to 102 and from across the country — from Seattle; Chicago; Asheville, North Carolina; New York City; and rural Maine — to talk candidly about the ways they are thriving at this stage of life.

Caring for emotional and spiritual needs of ICU families Medical Xpress; by Regenstrief Institute; 12/10/24 Family members of intensive care unit (ICU) patients often experience psychological and spiritual distress as they deal with serious illness and potential death. A new paper authored by a national team of experts at the intersection of health and spirituality highlights the critical role of the spiritual care provided by chaplains in supporting family members of ICU patients. ... "Our model describes three important ways that chaplain care supports ICU family members and helps them when faced with difficult decisions," said study co-author and chaplain-researcher George Fitchett, DMin, Ph.D., professor of religion, health and human values at Rush University Medical Center. "Chaplains provide family members with spiritual and emotional support. They also facilitate conversation with the medical team and help family members process the information from those conversations. Significantly, our study highlights the care provided by chaplains to ICU patient families and its impact on important outcomes." Editor's note: Click here for Improving Outcomes for for ICU Family Members: The Role of Spiritual Care, published in the Journal of Palliative Medicine, Oct 2024.

'Egregious' and 'insulting': 23 leaders slam Anthem BCBS' recently reversed anesthesia pay policy Becker's ASC Review; by Patsy Newitt; 12/9/24Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield has reversed its decision on a controversial anesthesia reimbursement policy update, which would have introduced a new reimbursement structure based on CMS physician work time values. Twenty-three anesthesiologists and certified registered nurse anesthetists connected with Becker's to discuss their thoughts. [Click on the title's link to read these powerful responses.]

Kaiser's Risant Health to become $35B system in 5 years: 14 things to know Becker's Hospital CFO Report; by Alan Condon; 12/5/24 Risant Health, a nonprofit formed by Oakland, Calif.-based Kaiser Permanente, has acquired two health systems in the last 10 months and plans to acquire three to four more systems over the next five years to grow into a company with $30 billion to $35 billion in annual revenue. Fourteen things to know: [Click on the title's link to continue reading.]

A healthcare system’s moral bankruptcy goes viral MedCity News; by Neal K. Shah; 12/5/24 Brian Thompson's murder was chilling, but the social media response of this tragedy was equally shocking, if eye-opening. It shows a massive collapse of public trust in our healthcare system, a system so broken that it bankrupts families, denies life-saving care, and treats death as an acceptable cost of doing business. When UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was gunned down outside a Manhattan hotel ..., something chilling happened: thousands of Americans responded not with horror, but with dark jokes and scathing comments about the health insurance industry. People shared stories of being denied coverage by the company and drew parallels comparing the CEO’s death to the ways they’ve been mistreated by America’s healthcare system. ... The tragedy of Thompson’s death is compounded by a cruel irony: He was rushed to Mount Sinai  — a healthcare system whose hospitals UnitedHealth removed from its network only a few months ago, leaving thousands of patients scrambling. Even in death, he couldn’t escape the byzantine system his company helped create.

Mission Health permanently shutters Asheville specialty hospital NC Health News; by Asheville Watchdog; 11/30/24 Long-term care facility was only one of its kind in western North Carolina; patients will have to seek care elsewhere.  Mission Health has permanently closed Asheville Specialty Hospital, the only long-term acute care hospital in western North Carolina, less than two months after suspending its services following Tropical Storm Helene. “We have made the difficult decision to not reopen Asheville Specialty Hospital, a small, long-term acute care facility located inside the St. Joseph’s campus,” Mission Health spokesperson Nancy Lindell said Nov. 25. “We have had to focus on prioritizing our resources during and after Hurricane Helene to care for the most urgent medical needs of our community." ... The next closest long-term acute facility, or LTACH, is in Greenville, South Carolina, a little more than 60 miles away. 

705 hospitals at risk of closure, state by stateBecker's Hospital CFO Report; by Molly Gamble; 11/22/24 More than 700 rural U.S. hospitals are at risk of closure due to financial problems, with more than half of those hospitals at immediate risk of closure. The count comes from the latest analysis from the Center for Healthcare Quality and Payment Reform, which is based on CMS's October 2024 hospital financial information. The center's analysis reveals two distinct levels of vulnerability among rural healthcare facilities: risk of closure and immediate risk of closure. ... The report also analyzes hospitals facing immediate threat of closure meaning financial reserves could offset losses on patient services for two to three years at most. Currently, 364 rural hospitals are at immediate risk of shutting down due to severe financial difficulties. [Click on the title's link for] a state-by-state listing of the number of rural hospitals at risk of closure in the next six to seven years and at immediate risk of closure over the next two to three years. Editor's note: Consider how these closures impact patients' trajectories of serious illness, timely treatment plans, referrals to home health, nursing facilities, and hospice care. How do these impact your service areas? What are the root causes for so many potential closures?

Nursing homes must break cycle of patient rehospitalization Special to the USA TODAY Network, republished by The Record, Bergen County; by Mary Holden Jones; 11/28/24 One of the most severe issues facing long-term care patients is rehospitalization. Over 20% of nursing home residents are readmitted to the hospital within 30 days of discharge, a cycle that often worsens health outcomes and creates significant emotional, financial and logistical burdens for families, caregivers and the health care system. ... While hospital stays are sometimes necessary, they create added risks of infections and the constant back and forth can add to confusion and cognitive decline — both of which further reduce quality of life and prolong recovery times. ... The emotional toll on families is equally significant. ... Fortunately, many rehospitalizations are preventable with more proactive, coordinated care. Technology-driven health care solutions offer a promising way to monitor patients’ health in real time, alerting caregivers and health care providers to early signs of trouble before a minor issue becomes a major problem.

Health system C-suites channel 'hospitality energy' for next year Becker's Hospital Review; by Laura Dyrda; 11/27/24 Health system C-suites are taking their organizations "back to the basics" next year to focus on improving quality outcomes and creating an elite patient experience. This means prioritizing a culture of service and training staff in hospitality. Cliff Megerian, MD, CEO of University Hospitals in Cleveland, said the system has focused on reducing variation in care pathways and optimizing clinical services for maximum quality, safety and efficiency this year, an effort that will continue into 2025. University Hospitals is also doubling down on its reputation for compassionate care, said Dr. Megerian. "The goal is for our patients – our guests – to feel truly cared for at each touchpoint along the patient journey, with clinical and non-clinical caregivers alike both bearing the responsibility to make this happen," he said. "The word 'hospitality' has at its root the word 'hospital' — it's our goal to work to bring that 'hospitality' energy to our work in healthcare, always informed by world-class science."Editor's note: The Latin root word described is "hospitium," which branched into contemporary words "hospitality," European "hostels" for travelers, "host," "hotels," and yes, "hospice." At its core, hospitium refers to travelers on a significant life journey, tended by compassionate hosts who provide rest and nourishment. Click here for more information, which emphasizes the relationship between the host and the guest.

NUMC partners with Hospice of New York to offer hospice servicesLong Island Press; 11/27/24 The Nassau Health Care Corporation, which represents Nassau University Medical Center, and the A. Holly Patterson Extended Care Facility have announced a partnership with Hospice of New York to offer hospice services for the first time for patients, regardless of their ability to pay. ... Megan C. Ryan, NHCC interim president and CEO [said,] “Hospice of New York’s proven expertise ensures that this initiative will provide the highest standard of care to patients and their families, including those from low-income and at-risk populations. Bringing this kind of care to those at their most vulnerable is why NUMC exists and why this partnership is so groundbreaking for both our institution and Hospice. We welcome the Hospice team to the NUMC family.” Ryan announced the appointment of Simon Ulubabov to the recently-created position of executive vice president for Hospital and Palliative Care Services at NUMC. 

No One Dies Alone: new Parker hospital program offers companionship to those at the end of life Parker Chronicle; by Haley Lena; 11/27/24 Katherine Wiley, a volunteer at AdventHealth Parker, was in the hospital’s emergency department when she saw first-hand how being alongside a stranger during their final moments of life can have a profound impact on those around them. Wiley sat with an elderly woman who was dying with no one around. The patient’s sons were trying to get to the hospital from Colorado Springs but didn’t make it in time. “When they got there, I told them that I had been with their mom so she was not alone and they were very grateful,” said Wiley. Wiley shared this story with the CEO of the hospital, Michael Goebel, at the annual volunteer luncheon last year, and the following week, the No One Dies Alone program was being set up. “We can provide companionship to patients in the dying process who are truly alone,” said Wiley. “In doing so, (it) provides a gift of respect and dignity to another human being at the end of life.” The volunteers of the program are called “compassionate companions.” They do not provide medical care, but they assist with comfort care measures – they sit beside the patient, hold their hands, play soothing music or read to the patients. For as many circumstances there are that lead a person to be hospitalized, there are also as many reasons why a patient is alone. The patient could have outlived other family members and friends, said Wiley, or are estranged from their family. It could be because the patients themselves don’t want to have their family see them die, but don’t want to be alone. Or they could be a John/Jane Doe who was in an accident. “We want to be there for them, whatever those reasons are,” said Wiley. “This sort of thing feeds my soul.”